Big Reds over Patriots
Big Reds’ hurler limits rival Patriots in win
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PARKERSBURG -- On a night of remembering the life of one of Parkersburg South's very own, it can be easy to forget about the rivalry game at hand. Dennis Hatfield, father of South player Haley Hatfield, passed away Wednesday night due to pancreatic cancer.
He was revered by his community, both Parkersburg South and Parkersburg High played this contest in memory of him.Hatfield was remembered during the pregame with scores of balloons released from the infield.
The Big Reds struck early to help distance themselves from their crosstown foes and win by a final of 7-2.
Maddi Leggett led off the ballgame with a triple in the gap in left to start things off with a bang. It didn't take long for her to get home, as a groundout from Janna Yost was enough for the Big Reds to draw first blood in this one.
After Lexi Summers was walked during her first plate appearance, Kisten Roberts hit a ball into right that missed the diving glove of Lauren Somerville.
The ball helplessly rolled to the fence, which resulted in an inside-the-park home run for Roberts.
That made the score 3-0, as the Patriots needed a spark to get back in the game. They got that spark down 4-0 in the fifth.
Mackenzie Riddle was pitching a shutout going into that inning when the plot thickened. A pair of sacrifice fly's, from Kylee McCorkle into left and Ashlee Ellison in center cut the deficit in half. The Patriots had life after the two runs were across, and with a runner at second, they looked to add more. That was until Maggie Richards had something to say about it.
During the next South at-bat, Richards was trying to get underneath a ball in centerfield when she collided with a teammate trying to catch the same ball. The catch looked to be in jeopardy until she held on through the contact with Maggie Sauers.
The opportunity to tack on more runs was erased for the Patriots, and they never got any closer.
Despite this, Aurora Slusher kicked off the next PSHS inning with a double past the left fielder. However, Riddle and the Big Reds fooled the lineup and didn't allow another baserunner in the game.
A few runs more, and the Big Reds ended this emotional night with the win. PHS coach Jason Roberts spoke well of the late Dennis Hatfield.
"With a guy like Dennis, it's emotional for everybody," he said. "He has girls on both of our teams he's coached and been around since they were little. It was a good day (to remember him). It was a lot of work by a lot of people, but we pulled it together."
South's Tim Burch offered similar comments about Hatfield.
"For a couple years, he was a travel ball coach that kids from PHS and South were underneath of," he said. "He was very respected and loved. It was very hard for (Haley). I fully expected her to not to play, but she texted me this morning to say she wanted to play. That's what her dad would have wanted, so we gave her the green light."
After an evening of this magnitude, both teams will have to shift their attention to their next matchups in order to keep pace with each other. The Patriots (10-5) travel today to Ripley to battle the Vikings at 5:30 p.m. Meanwhile, the Big Reds go to Woodrow Wilson at Noon on Saturday.